Broken bones, sexual assault and chronic neglect are the heartbreaking reality for more and more Australian children who are being taken from their homes because of harm inflicted on them by their own families.
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'Sarah Matthews' is the pseudonym for a child protection case worker at the Department of Community Services in New South Wales.
She talks about her experiences on the frontline and why she feels the systems within the department are failing.
Brothers Adam and Andrew Vandenberg were born into a violent and abusive family situation, but their lives took very different paths as one was removed into foster care and the other stayed within the family.They tell their stories to Skye Docherty.
Meet the Guests
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Professor Fiona Stanley
Professor Stanley is a doctor and a founding Director of the Telethon Institute for Child Health Research, which looks into the prevention of major childhood illnesses. A mother of two and Australian of the Year in 2003, Professor Stanley is a vocal advocate for the needs of children and their families.
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Dr Judy Cashmore
Dr Cashmore, based at the University of Sydney, has a PhD in developmental psychology and considerable research experience in relation to a child’s decision-making involvement in relation to care and protection, and guardianship. She has chaired or served as a member of a number of government committees concerning child death reviews and child protection legislation and policy in NSW.
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Janise Mitchell
Janise Mitchell is a social worker and National Manager of Education, Prevention and Therapeutic Care Programs at the Australian Childhood Foundation. She has extensive experience in child protection, high risk adolescents and public policy analysis. She has contributed to many reports on the welfare of children.
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Adam and Andy Vandenberg
Two brothers. Two very different experiences. Adam and Andy speak openly about how a parent's drug and alcohol addiction impacted their lives as children. Now young men in their early twenties, Adam and Andy reflect upon their extraordinary life of poverty, abuse, removal and reconciliation.
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Alyson Murray
Now 24 years old, Alyson spent ten years in the child protection system after she was dropped off at a police station by her father. A self confessed “difficult child”, Alyson was never fostered. She shares her story of sleeping rough in Western Sydney.
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